A blade arrangement for an ice skate boot typically consists of a support, which provides one or more flat surfaces for attaching to the sole and heel portion of the boot to support its weight, and a blade runner, which is mounted to the support and engages the ice when the ice skate boot is in use.
For figure skating particularly, it is desirable to have a lightweight ice skate, to make it easy for a user to move about freely and perform jumps etc. Traditionally, blade arrangements have been made from steel. More recently, blade arrangements have been made from aluminium and titanium to help keep the weight of the skates low. However, it has been found these skates may be noisier in use and can give a relatively harsh ride over the ice. In addition, they can provide little protection from impact injuries. This has become a greater issue in recent years as the sport has developed; the jumps performed in competitive figure skating becoming increasingly high, resulting in greater impact forces on landing. Other blade arrangements have been manufactured using carbon fibre, and although they perform well, these can be costly and complex to manufacture.